


Reacquaintance

by TwinIvoryElephants



Category: Gone Series - Michael Grant
Genre: Female Friendship, astrid is still kind of a snob but she is getting better, diana is basically dale gribble's "are you attempting to know me" quote, rip michael grant for not trying to mend their relationship after diana joins the good guys, they are both working on fixing themselves and deserve each other's support
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:15:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24588946
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TwinIvoryElephants/pseuds/TwinIvoryElephants
Summary: Diana is surprised when Astrid brings her breakfast. Set during FEAR.
Relationships: Diana Ladris & Astrid Ellison
Comments: 1
Kudos: 5





	Reacquaintance

Diana wanted a cigarette. She hadn't really smoked since the early days of the FAYZ, before starvation set in, but things were different now. She lay her hand on the swell of her belly, fingers brushing her belly button. It had gone from an "innie" to an "outie" as time went on, but she couldn't remember why. Something about the baby.

It was always something about the baby.

She lay in her bed, feeling the sway of the houseboat she was sharing with Sam-and Astrid, she reminded herself. It was strange to think the FAYZ's own resident genius had returned from her vacation out in the wild. Diana hadn't made the effort to reacquaint herself with her. They'd had their petty squabbles back before everything started going bad—though, Diana seemed to have mild beef with everyone back then, she had to admit—but it didn't seem worth it to try to make friends now. From what Diana had observed, Astrid didn't seem to have changed that much from the girl she'd been before. Despite becoming an atheist—or agnostic, Diana didn't care to find out which—she was still haughty, still holier-than-thou. Still thought she knew better than anyone else.

Suddenly, there came a knock on the door. Diana looked out the window, noted it was early, around six or seven in the morning, and scooted her body into a sitting position with a grunt. "Come in, Sam," she called, figuring he was there to bring her breakfast. Sometimes he did that, in the wary, nervous way it seemed all boys approached her now that she was pregnant. It was endearing, in a way. Cute.

"It's not Sam," came a voice as the door inched open, and—lo and behold—Astrid the Genius herself walked in with a breakfast tray. Her hair was still loose and tousled, tips ragged from the amateur cutting she'd done back in the wild. Instead of her nightgown, she was wearing a shirt that hung loosely on her frame—Sam's, probably.

Diana blinked, surprised, before recovering. "I get it," she said after a minute. "Sam sent you. Wanted us to have girl talk or something."

Astrid sat on the bed and handed Diana the tray. She took it, casting nary a glance at the fish, cabbage, and Dixie cup of water that made up her breakfast—as they made up all meals.

"No," Astrid said after a minute, clasping her hands on her lap. "I came on my own. No one sent me."

"Why?" Diana sipped her water; then it occurred to her. "Oh, you wanted to see—" She put the tray aside and gestured at her own swollen stomach. When Astrid looked away in some approximation of embarrassment, she scoffed, "I thought you'd look down on this sort of thing."

"I'm not a Christian anymore," Astrid pointed out, looking at Diana head on. "I'm...trying to get more comfortable looking at things from a different point of view."

Diana eyed her new choice of bedwear. "I see that," she remarked, and Astrid blushed. _Right on cue,_ she thought with a sort of satisfaction...but that soon faded. She sighed.

"Okay," she said, pulling up the hem of her shirt to expose her stomach. "Go ahead."

Astrid looked hesitant. She bit her lip, then put her hand over Diana's navel, fingers slowly relaxing onto her skin. Her hand was cold, but her touch was gentle. Almost reverent. Diana wondered if she knew that the baby was Caine's.

"Whose is it?"

Ah, of course—the big question. Diana could easily imagine the amount of viable male candidates parading through Astrid's mind. Most assumed it was Caine's, but not her. Not high and mighty Astrid Ellison.

"Caine's," Diana said. She looked directly into her blue eyes when she said it. She could see the slight twitch of Astrid's lip; she thought she was lying.

"Oh," she replied. When Diana looked down, she could see that one of Astrid's fingernails were missing. She wondered vaguely how it happened—not that she was going to ask.

Suddenly, Diana felt very tired. She started plucking bits of fish off her tray and poking them in her mouth.

Astrid watched her. "Do you have any cravings?" she asked suddenly.

"Some," Diana said. "They're not as bad as the kind you get when you're starving, though."

Astrid nodded a little. "Of course." Businesslike. There was a glimmer of something in her eyes. Diana furrowed her brow, wondering what it was. Then, it hit her—why she was here.

She wanted to learn. She was curious. For the first time, Diana had firsthand knowledge of something Astrid couldn't experience by reading a book. Diana was her own personal specimen.

The thought wasn't as depressing as it probably should have been. Diana shifted on her bed. Astrid took her hand off her stomach.

"Usually it's salty things," Diana admitted after a moment. "Not fish, but popcorn. Buttery popcorn, with that fake flavoring crap you get at the movie theater." Just the thought made her mouth water. "And chips. Salt-and-vinegar."

Astrid smiled. She had a pretty smile, Diana thought grudgingly. "My parents never let me eat that kind of thing," she said. "Junk, I mean. They didn't even let me have soda."

"That's tough." Diana sipped more water, then winced as a sharp pain struck. She put the Dixie cup down on the tray.

"Is it the baby?" Astrid looked with renowned interest at her stomach.

"Yeah." Diana breathed through her nose. "It kicks sometimes." _Thanks for the sympathy._

"What can I do?" Astrid looked at her with a concern that made her feel almost guilty. She looked down, blushing.

"Nothing," Astrid answered herself. "Sorry. I guess that was a stupid question."

"No, it's fine. Thanks. It's kind of like period cramps, but more... _physical_ , I guess. There's real weight behind the pain."

Astrid shook her head. "I can't imagine," she admitted.

Diana snorted. "You almost sounded humble just then."

To her surprise, Astrid smiled. "It's a struggle, but I can manage it, sometimes," she said with a chuckle.

Diana smiled back. "So, the great Astrid the Genius can take a joke."

Astrid shrugged. "I'm learning."

She left soon after that. Diana ate and set the tray on her bedside table. She knew she should get up soon, but it was too comfortable to lie in bed, to soak in her own thoughts, bothered by no one.

In a way, Astrid's visit had been kind of nice. She wasn't about to become best friends with the girl, but something about her had seemed markedly different. Diana wondered if she'd bring her breakfast again.

She didn't think she'd mind. It was nice to have female company, after so long hanging out with the likes of Caine and Drake and even Sam and Edilio. Dekka wanted nothing to do with her after the stunt she'd played forever ago—toying with her feelings, making her think that she and her were one and the same.

Diana didn't blame her. She still had a lot to work on, a lot to undo, and some people were less willing to forgive than others.

Astrid, though...they could start fresh. There was no lingering pain there, no hurt feelings. They hadn't known each other before the FAYZ; they were hardly aware of each other's existence.

Diana lay back onto her pillow with a sigh. It was just morning, and already she felt so tired. She longed to sleep for just a few more hours. She knew Sam wouldn't chide her.

Astrid and her could make up, maybe. Put all that crap behind them. It was a new day, after all.

Diana closed her eyes, satisfied. She slept, and for once, had no bad dreams.

**Author's Note:**

> First time writing from Diana's POV, so I'm not sure I've got her voice down yet. Kudos/comments (but especially comments) are very much appreciated!


End file.
